


A Smile for Good Luck, a Kiss for the Road

by Budapest_All_Over_again



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: ... - Freeform, BUT THAT'S A SPOILER, F/M, Gen, I would say what relationships, Spoilers if you haven't read Harry Potter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-11-16
Updated: 2012-12-12
Packaged: 2017-11-18 20:09:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/564800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Budapest_All_Over_again/pseuds/Budapest_All_Over_again
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"There's nothing going on, really. Well, that's a lie- oi, don't give me that look, McKinnon. Evans and Prongs are practically at each other's necks, Remus is seriously smitten with that Florence bird, and to be perfectly honest if Wormtail eats one more of those cream tarts I will kill him. But if you want to believe everything's just dandy here in Gryffindor so you can sleep at night, sure; everything's fine. Now give me my broom, we've got to smash Slytherin this weekend."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sardonic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sardonic/gifts).



> Hi! Sylvia here with what should be a really interesting fic (hopefully). It follows the basic plotline of Much Ado About Nothing by Shakespeare, but with James and Lily as our own Benedict and Beatrice. If you have questions/comments, feel free to comment here or on my ff.net account under the same name.
> 
> This fic shall be dedicated in two ways; one, to my dear Olivia (sardonic) who loves Harry Potter as much as I do. Two, to the Mycroft to my Jim, Claudia. May you both have as much fun reading as I will writing.
> 
> This is a prologue.
> 
> Read it.

**Oh Pobrecita, you tragic little teacup.**  
 **Did he go and shatter you again?**  
 **~ The Lion and the Teacup, Bishop Allen.**

Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a boy and girl. They went to the same school in a magical castle. The boy was easily one of the most popular in the school, while the girl was the brightest in her year. He had messy black hair that stuck up as though he’d just gotten off a broom (which often was the case). Hers was a deep red that hung in a loose plait over her left shoulder, fringe falling into her eyes. Both quick-witted, their banter never seemed to cease.

They fell in love when she was fifteen and he two months younger while dating in secret.

And one day, under the cover of darkness in an abandoned corridor late at night and for a false reason implanted in his head by a jealous third party, he broke her heart.                                                  

She was proud and stubborn, refusing to ever fall into the trap named James Harold Potter again. Their banter turned to spiteful remarks and cruel insults, and all traces of amity and friendship between the pair disappeared.

And this is where we now find our boy and girl – he nearly a man now, she mature beyond her years. Their bickering is legendary, their contempt for each other obvious.

And all this due to three words.

So much ado about nothing at all.

But this story is not just about this boy and girl, no; this story is about friendship and promises, jealousy and imperfections. It is about how everything is interwoven, one event the consequence of another. It is about how devious words can weasel their way into someone’s mind. But most of all, this is the story of how love overcomes all.

It’s not as clichéd as it sounds.


	2. Here We Go Again

When one visits Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters of Kings' Cross Station on September the first of any given year, one sees some interesting sights.

1977 was no exception.

In fact, within the short space of a few minutes, several important things happened:

A teenage girl with wavy blonde hair pinned up in a loose bun could be heard letting out a loud and very high-pitched squeak as a trunk landed with a thud on her foot.

A boy with a lean figure and shaggy black hair that fell into his eyes slapped his friend around the back of the head, and while the latter was distracted, stole what appeared to be a pastry from a box his friend was holding.

A sandy-haired boy with faded robes apologized furiously as he pulled himself off of the girl he had accidentally walked right into a few seconds earlier.

A mother tried to reach up to caress her only son's cheek, but ended up smacking his nose instead.

And, possibly the event most worthy of note, Xander Davies of Ravenclaw House got down on one knee and declared undying love to a thin red-headed girl whose school robes bore a shiny silver badge inscribed with 'Head Girl'.

* * *

 

Emmeline Vance was not in a good mood.

Her mousy hair refused to sit nicely, blowing all around in the late-summer wind. Her boyfriend, Benji Fenwick, was still visiting extended family overseas and so would be arriving at Hogwarts the next day. And, top it all off, her trunk was heavier than a Hippogriff, for goodness' sake. No wonder she was dropping it all over the place.

She had been walking around in circles, looking out for Lily or Amy for nearly ten minutes. Ten minutes. At this point, she'd even be glad to see Danielle, the bitchy Irish girl that had shared their Gryffindor bunkroom these last six years. Emmeline didn't consider herself one to usually get angry, but if the people in front of her didn't hurry up she would find a knife and stick it-

"Boo!"

She jumped at the noise and, in her shock, dropped her trunk, causing the girl who'd snuck up beside her to howl in pain as it landed squarely on her foot.

"Merlin, McKinnon, don't sneak up on me like that."

The blond girl held her foot in one hand and rubbed it as she hopped around on the other. "Shit, Vance, what was that for?"

She rolled her eyes. "Stop being such a baby. How was your summer?"

"Awful. I was working in my uncle's bookshop, dreadful pay," Marlene replied, putting her injured foot back on the ground. "Next time you're wandering 'round with an elephant in your arms, don't go dropping it on people's feet!"

Emmeline, ignoring the last sentence, smirked. "Bookshop? Sounds perfect for-"

"Nuh-uh," Marlene said, cutting her off. "No more Ravenclaw jokes. It's been seven years since we were sorted into separate houses, get over it."

"And it's been seven years since Ravenclaw last won the Quidditch Cup, get over it," her friend mimicked. The two had been engaging in 'friendly' competition since they tried out for their house teams back in third year. The Gryffindor played Beater, while Marlene held a chaser position in the Ravenclaw squad.

The blond narrowed her eyes at the Gryffindor. "That was a low blow. We'll get you this year, Vance, and your Quidditch Team too!" She cackled evilly, causing a few first-years behind her to look horrified. Emmeline noticed this and grinned at them.

"She's a Prefect. I hope none of you guys are sorted into Ravenclaw…" she trailed off, tilting her head towards her friend.

"Don't worry guys, she's just kidding." The first-years walked off, looking rather confused, and she shot a glare in Emmeline's direction. "And that's why I got a Prefect position, opposed to you."

"And I thank Merlin every day that I didn't get it. Lily actually cares about the ickle firsties, the dear."

"Speaking of Lily, you should go find her. I don't think anyone's told her who Head Boy is yet," Marlene said worriedly, biting her lip. "You should probably tell her before Black gets there first."

Emmeline nodded. "And you should probably go study or something." She braced herself as Marlene slapped her arm again, laughing.

* * *

 

They leaned against a brick wall near the back of the platform, the pair of them. The shorter of the two was watching some of the younger students squirm out of their mothers' embrace, a melancholy air around him. "Were we ever like that?"

"Short?" his friend replied. "I suppose so. I'm pretty sure I was never that ugly, though. Completely overwhelmed by Mummy Dearest? Not me, mate. You forget that Regulus is the favourite son. And the only one, now I've run off to the Potter's." He laughed once, a low bark. "Prongs is probably still with his mum. She'll be trying to fuss over him one last time, I'll bet."

"My mum didn't even bother to come this year." Peter shrugged.

"My mum wouldn't come to my funeral, mate, I win." He tilted his head to the side, considering something. "Actually, she may just come to spit on my grave." Sirius took a step away from the wall before turning back around. "Enough talk about depressing things. It's the start of Seventh Year, we're nearly free. Got any of those tarts again?"

Peter grinned, rifling around a brown satchel before pulling out a metal tin with Property of Pettigrew scrawled in his sloppy handwriting on the lid. As Sirius stepped towards them, eagerly eyeing up the box, Peter pulled them out of reach. "They're mine, Padfoot, I baked them."

Sweeping his black fringe to the side with his hand, Sirius narrowed his grey eyes. "Is this a declaration of war, Wormtail?"

His friend mimicked his expression. "I do believe it is."

"Don't you remember what happened last time? Personally, I don't think I'll ever forget the Gryffindor Biscuit Blanket Ban of '75."

"Hey, don't pin that one on me. You stole Remus's chocolate to appease the 'baking gods'" – Peter made a speech-marks gesture with his hands – "and it all went downhill from there."

"Well, whosever fault it was, McGonagall banned biscuits from the Common Room and the dorms, something we really don't want happening again, do we?"

"No!" he squeaked, gripping the tin tighter to him.

Sirius smirked. "Just hand over the tarts and no-one gets hurt."

"I won't let you. Mine!" He tried to look threatening, instead appearing rather comical.

Sirius thought for a moment before turning to look at the mass of students again. He let out a gasp, pointing at a random person in the crowd. "Hey, Wormtail, isn't that Stephanie Jones from Ravenclaw? Wow, has she gotten fit over the summer…"

As he predicted, Peter craned his neck to see this (imaginary) girl. Sirius snuck a hand into the tin Peter was holding, retrieved a strawberry tart and popped it into his mouth.

"I don't see her… you sure it was her, Sirius?" Peter asked, confusion in his voice.

Sirius merely grinned, and slapped him across the back of the head for good measure.

"Oi! That hurt, you dunce," Peter complained, rubbing the area with his palm.

"Speaking of dunces, let's find Prongs. Someone needs to take a photograph of Evans' face when he tells her he's Head Boy. She'll never know what hit her." He cackled loudly. Peter nodded his agreement, and the pair set off through the crowd.

* * *

 

He was running late.

Again.

For some reason or another, his mother had delayed their trip to Kings' Cross for hours until he'd eventually given up and just apparated with his trunk, having passed the test the year before.

And now, barely ten minutes before the train was due to leave, Remus was bustling through the mass of people, trying to find any of the other Marauders.

He was so wrapped up in looking for the other three that he wasn't looking where he was going and promptly tripped straight into a Gryffindor seventh year with shoulder-length brown hair that was frizzy at the ends.

Except this wasn't quite the full story.

Remus Lupin may have been many things – lycanthrope, Gryffindor, bright – but clumsy was not one of them.

In fact, he would never have 'tripped' if, two years earlier, he had not intervened in a fight between James and Lily back in sixth year behind the Quidditch pitch.

Except he had, meaning Professor McGonagall had discovered James and Lily duelling, resulting in the pair of them being out late on a Sunday night in detention.

That was how Remus became to be by the fire in the common room late on a Thursday night, waiting for James to appear (and to check if he was still alive – after all, neither he nor Lily ever came out of a situation where the two were forced totally unscathed).

One of Lily's friends had landed ungracefully into the chair next to him just after eleven o'clock. She was there for the same reason as he, except for Lily's sake.

When James had come back to the common room just before midnight, he had lost an eyebrow and any semblance of his previous good mood. He had seen Remus and Amelia (or 'Amy', as she preferred to be called, she told Remus) talking enthusiastically.

The truth was that this girl was really quite interesting. Shy, yes – but if you asked her about something she was passionate in, she would light up and talk animatedly.

James had seen it as 'fraternizing with the enemy’ and ignored Remus for two weeks. Sirius, ever curious, had asked James what the sudden cease of communication was all about, and had just received mumblings about betrayal, Evans, and the name 'Amelia'. Sirius worked the rest out for himself.

In typical Sirius fashion, he'd badgered Remus for weeks on end before 'realising' that said badgering would get nowhere.

This 'realising' may have been accompanied by multiple threats of castration and disembowelment on Remus' part. He wasn't entirely sure Sirius knew what disembowelment was, but hey, it sounded scary and it worked.

And now, here was Remus, literally falling onto Amelia. Coincidence? Definitely not. It was clearly Sirius' fault. The bastard had perfected the Tripping Jinx back in second year, and used it at every possible opportunity.

But all of this is not important as the fact that Remus had just sort-of-but-not-really tripped into the side of none other than Amelia MacMillan.

Remus instinctively wrapped his arms around her to stop himself from falling, while she winced at the sudden weight of a 17-year-old male draped around her middle.

Trying very hard not to laugh, he smiled sheepishly up at her very confused-looking face. "Err, hello there Amy. How was your summer?"

"Pretty good, thanks. Now would you mind detaching yourself from me?"

He realised he was still firmly attached to her, and let go quickly. "Sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going," he lied, mentally cursing the day Sirius' parents had gotten lazy with the Contraceptive Charm.

She raised an eyebrow, evidently not believing him. "Sure. And how was your summer? Anything interesting happen?"

"I spent a lot of time with Pr- James and Sirius, so yeah, quite a bit." Remus made a great show of checking the watch on his wrist, and looking very alarmed. "Oh, I'm so sorry Amy, but I must be off. There's something happening with... ermm… Peter! Yes. I'm very worried about him. I'll see you later!"

And with that, a very flustered-looking Remus ran off, suitcase in tow.

Amelia watched him disappear into the crowds. "Honestly, what is wrong with him…" she muttered to herself. Although she was confused and just a little annoyed, she couldn't help but smile.

* * *

 

"Seriously, Mum, I need to go."

Dorea Potter straightened the Head Boy badge pinned to her son's school robes, ignoring him.

"Mum!" James, taller than her by a good foot, groaned. "I have to get to the Heads' Carriage. Lily will be waiting and-"

Dorea cut him off. "And you want to get off on the right foot this year. Yes, I know." She smiled at her son, the spitting image of his father with his untidy hair and cheeky grin. "Can't a mother treasure this last platform farewell with her only son? Children these days, honestly."

"Your only son? What's Sirius then?"

"The family pet, of course," she replied with a straight face.

"Oh! Mrs. Potter! Say it isn't so!" Sirius, who appearing next to James, gasped dramatically, clutching a hand to his chest.

"I'm sorry, dear, but my mother taught me never to tell a lie."

"What went wrong with James then?" Sirius frowned, although both Potters knew him well enough to know that he was joking. "A bloody pathological liar, he is."

Mrs. Potter said, "Language, Sirius," at the same time as James snorted and said, "You're one to talk."

"One at a time, ladies, hold your Thestrals." He merely grinned at the scowl James sent in his direction. "Anyway, Prongs, I'm gonna get us a decent compartment. We don't want to have to share with Finnegan and Skeeter again."

James recalled the hours he was forced to spend with the two self-proclaimed 'gossip queens' of the school back in fifth year, and shuddered. "Fair enough. Where's Pete and Moony?"

"I lost Peter back in the crowd somewhere. Probably trying to chat up Hestia Jones again. Remus is probably on a rampage somewhere after I gave him into that Amelia bird. Evans' friend. It was a terrible accident," he said with a smirk.

"MacMillan?" James guessed. His friend nodded. "You wouldn't happen to be trying to set him up again, would you?"

"Of course not. I remain impartial to all my friends' affairs, romantic and otherwise."

"Sirius, dear," Dorea interrupted. "What about your compartment? You've only got a minute or so left."

"I'm going, I'm going. I'll let you say goodbye to wee Jamesie here." To James' complete embarrassment, Sirius wrapped one arm around him and grabbed his chin with the other. "Bye-bye, my little Jamesie-Waymesie. I'll see you soon." Reluctantly letting go, Sirius pretended to hold back a sob. "The sky isn't falling, my little chicken, don't cry," he told James, shooting a quick wink at Dorea (who at this point looked fit to burst into laughter). With a quick glance at the students watching this display with interest, Sirius picked up his bag and ran off, shouting "They just grow up so fast!" as he dodged students and their families to get to the train.

James blinked, before turning back to his mother. "Why do I put up with that?"

"Because you're worse than that half the time." 

"C'mon, Mum, it's got to be at least seventy percent."

"I'll settle for sixty." She paused for a moment, the smile fading off her face. "Your father would've loved to have been here."

"Well, he's not, so no use crying over it is there?" he said bitterly. He immediately regretted it, and bit his lip. "I'm sorry."

She looked down at the ground, not meeting his eyes. "It's okay. I understand. Merlin, I'm a tad peeved at the whole thing anyway. But it'll be fine. He's going to be home soon from this mission, and that'll be the end of it."

"Except it won't be, and we both know it. He's an Auror, Mum, they never stop. He'll come home from this one and then before long he'll be off on another one."

"We are not going to argue about this here, James," she said firmly.

"I'm sorry. You know how I feel about him leaving you all alone while he's away."

"I won't be by myself, dear, I have Peoni. She'll look after me."

James didn't reply, instead looking towards the train. "I should probably go meet Pads and drop off my trunk before heading to see L- ow! Shit!"

What had happened was as he finished his sentence, he turned to face Dorea; unfortunately, she was reaching up to caress his cheek at the same time, resulting in the heel of her hand colliding with his nose. As blood began to drip out of his nose, James pointed his wand at the injury and muttered  _Episkey._

"Merlin, Mum, trying to give me something to remember you by? Doing it that way isn't going to invoke much love on my part."

"I'm sure you'll be fine," she said as she enveloped him into a hug. "And I'm just going to ignore the shocking language you used before."

"Fine by me." He grinned, before wrinkling his nose. "Ugh, it feels weird. You've got a good aim, y'know."

"Oh, stop being cheeky," she said, although she didn't mean it. "It might bruise. Have fun with Lily. Be nice to her this year."

"I will. I promise."

* * *

 

There was no great hurrah when Lily Evans was given the title of Head Girl; after all, she'd been the main candidate for the role. With 11 Ordinary Wizarding Levels and two years of prefect experience behind her, she was the obvious choice. It probably helped a bit that she was also a sweet girl with a wicked sense of humour and a disposition for leadership.

She didn't really consider herself someone who could be surprised easily – she was a witch, for goodness' sake, there wasn't much out there that was more surprising than the existence of magic – and yet here she was, eyes wide, jaw dropped, as the blond in front of her smiled up at her in what she supposed was meant to be seductive.

She looked for support from Mary - the girl she was talking to before Xander's interruption - but her friend was looking away from her, obviously trying hard not to laugh at the gesture.

"Lily?" the boy prompted. "What do you say? You, me, The Three Broomsticks?"

She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to figure out how to let him down gently. "I'm so sorry, Xander, but I'm really not looking for a boyfriend at the moment."

Xander stood up, not meeting her eye while he dusted off his jeans. "No, it's okay. I understand. You're a seventh-year, and way out of my league. I'd have rejected me too."

She shook her head furiously, her auburn hair threatening to escape from her loose ponytail. "It's not like that. It's just that I've got Head Girl duties now, and N.E.W.T.s are coming up, and I just don't think I'd have time."

"Well then." He looked around, noticing the crowd around them for the first time. "If you do decide that you have time, you let me know?"

She smiled at him, her cheeks dimpling, though still a little pink from the embarrassment of having a guy who she barely knew practically propose to her in front of her fellow students and their families. "Sure."

The corner of Xander's mouth curled into a roguish grin. "Can we kiss on it?"

Lily just laughed. As soon as Xander left in search of his other sixth-year friends, she turned around and searched for brown ringlets cascading down someone's back. Finding her target, Lily grabbed her shoulder bag and swung it at her friend, who gave a yelp.

"What do you have in there?" Mary asked as she rubbed her arm, pouting.

"Couple of books I borrowed from Remus over summer. You haven't seen him, have you?"

"Nope," she replied, popping the 'p' sound. Rolling back and forth on her heels, she grinned. "While we're on the subject of borrowing, I sort of borrowed my dad's old record player from the garage, and-"

Lily quirked an eyebrow, maintaining a straight face. "As Head Girl, you know I can't condone that."

Mary scoffed. "You need a better pokerface." Lily stuck her tongue out at the brunette, who returned the gesture. "He hasn't used it in years, you prat. Anyway, I figured since you're le crème de la crème when it comes to Charms, you should fix it for me so it works at Hogwarts."

"Mary! Did you not hear what I just told Xander? I'm gonna be super busy this year," she groaned.

"Are you telling me you'd rather listen to Finnegan blasting Celestina Warbeck on her radio? Because I'd rather not." Mary pouted, her eyes wide.

Lily grimaced. "Eugh. I see your point. I'll give it a shot. Hey, don't smile like that! I'm not promising anything."

"Who's promising what?" A mop of brown hair rested on Lily's shoulder of its own accord.

"Amy!" Lily turned around quickly, careful not to bowl over her friend, and pulled her into a hug. "You silly girl, why didn't you write?"

"Merlin, I've missed you," she said as she hugged Lily back. "I'm sorry I couldn't write. Parent problems. I'll tell you later," she whispered into the redhead's ear. "Mary! Is that you? You've cut your hair, it looks lovely." Lily rolled her eyes– this was such an Amelia thing to do, to change the subject as soon as the conversation grew close to something she was uncomfortable with.

"You like it?" Mary did a twirl, beaming. "Lily didn't even notice, the hag."

Lily considered poking her tongue out the brunette, but realised it was true. "You're right, I'm so sorry." She smiled sheepishly, trying to look apologetic. "I was, after all, just a tad preoccupied by the Ravenclaw declaring love for me, you know."

Amelia blinked for a moment, before shaking her head. "Honestly, Lily, no wonder Potter was infatuated with you. You're both complete idiots."


	3. You could say that

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who's afraid of the Big Bad Head Boy?

If you asked anyone at Hogwarts what the most important thing to do on the first day of school is, you'd be surprised as to the answer. There will be a few that tell you to save some of the Pumpkin Pasties from the Sorting Feast for later, as the house-elves didn't make them quite as well as the Honeydukes shop from wherethe school ordered the Sorting Feast food. There may be a few who tell you to sit next to a cute person of the opposite (or the same, in some cases) gender on the train, because then you're more likely to get a date to the first Hogsmeade weekend before the year had even begun.

But most people would just say that the important thing about the first day of school was how you spent the multiple-hour-long ride to Hogwarts.

In the week before their fifth year began, the Marauders managed to get a hold of the owl addresses of every new first year, and sent them a booklet with instructions on "How To Survive The Train Ride To Hogwarts: A Guide by the Most Popular and Best-Looking Men at the Aforementioned School." This booklet included information on the myths surrounding the Trolley Lady and Train Conductor's supposed affair in 1974, where to hide from the Prefects, and a whole section on the 'cliques' that occupied each of the carriages.

Needless to say, Gryffindor Head of House Minerva McGonagall was  _not_  impressed by this.

(And yet she gave each of them twenty points for ingenuity and trying to help younger students.)

(She tried to tell herself that it was to do with the fact that Slytherin had won the House Cup the year before and she was determined for it not to happen again, but Sirius believed it had something to with the fact that she was madly in love with him. This theory was quashed, however, a week later when Sirius charmed a picture of the pair of them onto the blackboard of the Transfiguration classroom and she took ten points from them  _and_ gave him a detention for inappropriate conduct towards a teacher. He remained in denial, believing she just wanted to spend even more time with him.)

The booklet was destroyed en masse by their owners, except for a few rare copies from Gryffindor House that picked themselves off the floor of their owner's dormitory and walked themselves out, as though being carried by an invisible person walking through the room.

These copies are now left lying in compartments on the Hogwarts Express every year in the hope that a first year picks one up and starts to read.

According to Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, there are three key tips to starting off the school year successfully.

Lily had never read it herself. When faced with the option to read one, she was either preoccupied with sorting out Danielle and Emmeline's latest fight or Prefect Duties or avoiding Amos Diggory.

Perhaps this was the reason why, in 1977, she had such a horrible ride to school. (Danielle later said it was karma, but Lily had tuned out her comments over the years.)

* * *

_1\. Choose a compartment with people who seem friendly and look as though they have food with them. Steer clear of Slytherins and red-heads –they're always trouble._

* * *

Lily, Amy, and Mary had been spending the last few minutes looking for a decent place to sit, wandering up and down the halls of the Hogwarts Express. Somewhere along the way they'd found Emmeline, who was lagging behind them with her extremely heavy trunk. The four of them sat in the hallway, obstructing anyone from passing through, much to severalsecond-year students' annoyance.

"So, Lily, any death threats yet?" said Emmeline, who was seated in such a way that no-one else could pass through.

"Funnily enough, no. Clearly Avery can't have gotten word of it yet. We can't rule out the possibility, though."

A voice spoke up from behind them, causing the majority of the girls to jump slightly. "Or maybe Avery's just been too busy trying to de-grease himself after his last encounter with Snivellus. It's hard to tell," Sirius joked, causing two of the other Marauders present to laugh while Remus just rolled his eyes.

Grinning, Mary held a hand out to Sirius, who pulled her to her feet and then into a hug. The pair had been friends for years for some reason, despite the fact that they had nothing in common. Their friends were all confused by it, but when they asked about it they were met with shrugs and grins.

By the time the pair of them had pulled back, Emmeline was on her feet too. "If it isn't our two favourite slags," she joked, earning her a bemused look from Sirius and an annoyed one from Mary.

"Now, now, Vance, play nice." Sirius held his hands up in a don't-shoot gesture.

"Sorry, which one of us was banned from playing Quidditch at Hogwarts?" Lily said dryly, as she stood up.

Sirius narrowed his eyes at her, while Remus stepped beside Sirius. "Let's let our darling Head Girl get to her Prefect meeting, shall we?"

She ignored Sirius and gave Remus a quick smile before turning to the other girls. "I'll see you all later? Take my trunk for me?"

They nodded, and Lily, grabbing the notebook and pen she'd bought at a Muggle bookshop earlier that morning, moved through the Marauders and around the corner to where the entrance to the next carriage was. The girls said their farewell also, and left in the other direction in the hope of finding a carriage.

"Oh, I cannot believe this," James said as soon as he thought Lily was out of range.

Remus, always the peacemaker, raised his eyebrows. "It's not going to be that bad."

"Her? Head Girl? Dumbledore must be mad," he practically yelled, before banging his head against the glass door of a nearby compartment. It took all three of the other Marauders to pull him away.

"Prongs, mate, I hate to say it, but Remus is right," Sirius said, slapping James on the shoulder. His friend scoffed, and muttered something that sounded like '… last time I read through  _your_  essay at the last minute'.

"Uh, guys…" Peter made a wild hand gesture, and the other three turned around to see the three sixth-year Ravenclaws whose compartment they'd pulled James off of. They were all wearing badges bearing the acronym SBAJPASAMWWLTSVIABC. This stood for 'Sirius Black And James Potter Are Seriously Attractive Men Whom We'd Like To Snog Violently In A Broom Cupboard'. This was often shortened to Black and Potter's Fan Club for ease of speech.

The tallest (and obvious ringleader) of the three, a girl by the name of Rita Skeeter, waved at the boys, grinning impishly at the four of them. "My dear James, you don't have to make an entrance like that to our compartment. You're always welcome to everything and anything you may… desire." She ran her tongue over her overly-white teeth and settled her hands on her hips in a manner that can only be described as a poor attempt at being seductive.

James just rolled his eyes. "Thanks but no thanks, Skeeter."

The three girls all pouted. "Don't you like us, boys?" That from Rita.

Sirius said, "No. Absolutely not."

Rita motioned to the other girls, who took a step forward. "No…we  _insist._ "

Looking at the other three boys, James yelled "Vatican Cameos!"

Now, three things happened at once.

One, Sirius and Peter set off sparks with their wands.

Two, James reached into his bag and pulled out something.

Three, all three boys disappeared.

Well, almost.

Four pairs of feet could be seen running  _very_ quickly along the corridor, much to the three SBAJPASAMWWLTSVIABC members' dismay.

Once on another carriage, James pulled off the Invisibility Cloak and packed it into his bag again. The boys laughed, before the bespectacled one swore. "I've got that Prefect meeting. I'll see you all later."

Watching their friend run off into the distance, the boys failed to notice Rita Skeeter approaching them with her wand outstretched…

* * *

_2\. Be careful of doors. There are hundreds of students on this trains, and the chance of one opening a door at the exact moment you touch it is unbelievably high._

* * *

She didn't consider herself a coward. She was, after all, a Gryffindor. Not that she believed in those house stereotypes; Lily was broad-minded enough to know that not every Slytherin was heartless, that not every Ravenclaw was studious, that not every Gryffindor behaved rashly.

However, at this particular moment, she didn't feel particularly brave.

She'd visited the Prefect compartment many times before in her role as one of the two Gryffindor Prefects in her year. The journey to the front of the train was one she'd done many times before. Logically, she shouldn't be worried about this.

That logic, however, obviously hadn't factored in the fact that she had never had to face – and run – a whole group of Prefects, who were at her beck and call (theoretically, anyway) with the help of the Head Boy. A person whose identity, at this present moment, was a complete mystery to Lily.

It wasn't that she was scared about working with a boy – of course not. She was seventeen, not ten, thank you very much. It was rather the fact that she had no idea who it was that terrified her.

The Head Boy was traditionally chosen from the four sixth-year prefects. But the Hufflepuff Prefect hadn't returned for seventh-year, and her good friend Remus had told her that he'd not been bestowed the position. That left Ravenclaw and Slytherin, and the promise of imminent doom for Lily as she knew she could work with neither.

She had gotten along fine with Amos Diggory, Ravenclaw Prefect for these last two years. At least, she had until he suddenly started ignoring her entirely. He had switched patrol dates so he was no longer working with her and moved places in class so he didn't have to look at her anymore. Once, when partnered with her for a Runes assignment, Amos refused to talk to her, resulting in one of the two _Troll_  marks she'd received during her time at Hogwarts.

She had no idea why he hated her so much, but Lily knew that if Diggory was chosen as Head Boy, her seventh year would be hell.

Of course, she'd definitely prefer that to the alternative. She and Sev-  _no, Snape,_ had a 'history'. They had been best of friends, until he'd decided (very publicly) that their friendship could never work out because she was just a simple Mudblood and not worthy of touching his shoes.

Well, if that wasn't a deal-breaker, she didn't know what was.

And now she was left in this position; no matter who the Head Boy was, he was going to hate her.

 _Well, isn't_ this  _going to be a fun year,_ she thought.

By this time, she was standing outside the Prefect Compartment, taking a deep breath. She reached out to push the door open when it opened from the other side, and she fell right through.

"Lily!"

Oh,  _shit._

"Amos. Sorry about that," she said as she stood up, dusting herself off, not meeting his eye.

"Er, it's okay. Don't worry." He shut the door as she stepped into the compartment. Looking at his robes, she noticed a distinct lack of a Head Boy badge.  _Oh sweet Merlin thank you,_ she quickly counted the number of students in the room.

"Who's missing?" she asked the room, which stopped talking amongst themselves and shrugged.

"Head Boy, I suppose," offered one of the Prefects.

Lily had to restrain from rolling her eyes. "And who would that be?"

It was at this point that the door opened and in stepped none other than James Potter, Head Boy.

"Sorry I'm late, got caught up in something." He held a hand up, and the Prefects chattering amongst themselves quietened.

He then turned to Lily. "Hello, Lily. I suppose I should've told you I was Head Boy earlier." She didn't reply. "Surprised?"

Now, ladies and gentleman, this is where I – the narrator –show you an important life lesson.

Girls lie.

A lot.

You see, this was what was going through Lily's head at this present moment:

 _Oh my great giddy aunt's bright pink undergarments. Are you kidding me? James? I cannot work with him. He's irresponsible and nasty and I_ heard  _what he said about me before,_ 'Her? Head Girl? Dumbledore must be mad'. _Prat. I cannot believe this. Especially after what happened in fifth year. I can't even be in the same room with him and have a civil conversation for goodness' sake. Shit. This is not going to end well._

And this, dear readers, is what she said:

"Of course not. Remus told me. Dumbledore is out of his mind. No-one respects  _you_ , Potter. Shall we actually start this meeting now, or shall we spend the rest of the day talking about you? I'm sure that's what you want." And with that, she turned to the group, a firm smile on her face.

_Don't cry, Lily. Don't do that to yourself._

Half an hour later, James ushered the Prefects out of the compartment. She picked up her notes after waving good bye to the last student. She moved to walk out of the door, but James blocked the way out.

"What was that about, Evans?"

"That, I believe, was a Prefect meeting. Not that you've ever been to one," she added hastily.

"Not that. 'No-one respects you, Potter'," he mimicked, speaking in a high tone.

She just rolled her eyes. "I'm not in the mood for your dramatics today. Or, to be perfectly honest, any day. So if you'll excuse me, I have things to do."

"And that's you in one word, isn't it? 'Perfectly honest'."

Her eyebrows furrowed as she narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't act as if you know me, Potter."

"Welcome back, my dear Lady Disdain. I have missed you so much."

She tried to push past him without success. "Shut up already, Potter, I don't care. No-one cares."

He just looked at her. She found it unnerving after a moment. "What is it? Have I finally rendered the Great Head Boy speechless?"

When he finally spoke, his voice was lifeless and unanimated.

"You're wrong."

"What? Got a girlfriend? The poor girl. I should send her flowers."

He shook his head. "Not about that. You said no-one cares. You cared."

She took a deep breath, picked up her pile of papers, and pushed past him, muttering 'past tense, Potter' as she left.

* * *

_3\. Be careful what you say. People will always be able to hear you, and no matter what, someone'll hear it wrong and suddenly the whole school will be discussing your secret sombrero fetish._

* * *

Severus Snape hated James Potter.

This hate was not a simple matter of jealousy or dislike, no; this was a deep loathing, centred around their clashing personalities and the fact that one wanted to serve Lord Voldemort.

Let's face it - the pair were never going to braid each other's hair and hold hands, frolicking through the Forbidden Forest together.

This was probably why he was so infuriated to find that the Quidditch Captain had been made Head Boy, too.

That was  _his_ position. Severus and Lily were meant to be Heads together, work together, and then she'd see that he wasn't as dark as she thought, and she'd be friends with him again.

(Of course, this was all just wistful thinking. Lily wouldn't rekindle their friendship if it could save her favourite teacher, Flitwick, from being attacked by Grindylows.)

Nonetheless, the boy was furious. He and three other sixth and seventh year Slytherin students were seated in 'their' compartment, discussing various rumours floating around the school.

"Did you hear about that blood traitor, Prewett? The red-head one they all called the UnofficialMother of Gryffindor? She just had her first kid. They're Pureblood, sure, but the father tinkers with Muggle artifacts. No shame, that one."

"That Potter kid – James, was it? The cocky one in Gryffindor – was seeing his mother off at the station. Dorea  _Potter_. I still can't believe she married a Potter, she was much better off as a Black. Traitor. I heard they freed all their house elves, too."

Snape spoke up. "Never mind all that nonsense. This year we are eligible to join the ranks of the Dark Lord's elite," he said, a rare smile creeping onto his face.

* * *

"You see, the reason she broke it off with you was because she caught you snogging McKinnon."

"Who then proceeded to slap you to within an inch of your life," Peter added

"Before snogging you  _again_  less than a week later behind the statue of Uric the Oddball, I believe."

Sirius looked out the compartment door, as though considering something for the first time. "D'you reckon if I found her now, Marlene wouldfind an empty carriage with me?"

Remus shook his head in disbelief, while Peter laughed. "Up to you, mate."

The boy shoved his wand into his back pocket (something that had annoyed his parents no end as a child, hence why he did it so often) and ran off to find the aforementioned person of the female variety.

Passing by a row of compartments, some of the conversation wafted into the corridor. He could only hear bits and pieces, though.

A particular segment really caught his attention, though.

"We're meeting him at the Hogs Head on the first Hogsmeade weekend. Bring Avery, and Rosier."

"What about Regulus?"

"He's already been initiated. Got the Mark and everything."

 _Well, isn't this year going to be interesting_ , he thought, grimacing before running off to find Marlene.

(Nothing ever calmed him down like a decent snog, after all.)


End file.
